Shawn Griffiths
Here we are again – another government shutdown. Every few months, Congress enters another partisan fiscal battle as Republicans and Democrats refuse to work with each other to pass anything more than a continuing resolution to keep the U.S. funded.
FACT: The last time Congress passed a full appropriations “budget” (i.e. passed all the regular appropriations bills for a fiscal year without relying on a continuing resolution) was FY1997.
On Tuesday, IVN asked its readers a question: “If there is a government shutdown, should members of Congress get paid?” And boy, did independent voters have something to say. The post garnered more than 5,300 comments in 24 hours.
And it has been viewed by more than 100,000 people.
A government shutdown began at midnight (Eastern) Wednesday after Republicans and Democrats failed to agree on a continuing resolution that would have kept the government funded for another 7 weeks. And to no one’s surprise, the blame game ensued.
House Speaker Mike Johnson was joined by Republican leaders during a press conference Wednesday morning, during which they placed the blame solely on Democrats -- accusing them of holding the government "hostage" to protect public benefits for illegal immigrants.
Meanwhile, Democrats say they remained in D.C. to work out a deal with Republicans, but Republicans chose to let the government shut down instead of working with them on funding health programs and subsidies that affect millions of American citizens.
MSNBC has run headlines like, “As the government shutdown begins, Trump isn’t doing Republicans any favors,” while the New York Post published a piece titled, “US government shuts down after Senate Democrats fail to support stopgap funding bill.”
All of this is going on while mainstream news outlets treat the whole ordeal as entertainment with “shutdown timers” and cheeky graphics.
While party members squabble, the people who face the worst consequences of a government shutdown – whether it is furloughed workers or people who rely on stalled federal programs – are not the people who make fiscal policy.
Members of Congress enjoy a re-election rate around 90% because of how safe districts are for incumbents and/or their party. So, while the Trump administration talks about firings, the ones least likely to lose their jobs are the people responsible for the shutdown.
Is it really surprising that members of both parties have allowed this to happen 3 times in the last 15 years? And they constantly let fiscal fights go down to the wire, fueling anxieties over more shutdowns.
FACT: The longest government shutdown in U.S. history occurred during Trump’s first term between December 22, 2018, to January 25, 2019 (35 days).
In absence of accountability and incentives to work together, the parties can continue to play games at the expense of keeping the government funded and doing what is best for the American people.
What Independent Voters Are Saying
Independent voters are understandably frustrated with the state of politics in the U.S. When asked if members of Congress should get paid if they allow a shutdown, IVN reader Dan Dunne said, “no nor the president or any cabinet member."
In fact, the response was overwhelmingly "no." And while this is not a surprise, the thousands of people who wanted to respond to the question shows that not only do independent voters care, but they are also fed up.
Barbara Talmadge said “None of them (should get paid). They aren't governing, so why pay them?”
Absolutely not. They need to work together to solve things. That is their job,” said Sabrina Cooley.
Some expressed skepticism that denying lawmakers pay would actually accomplish anything since many of them are already millionaires or close to it. In fact, OpenSecrets found that more than half of U.S. lawmakers have a net worth over a million dollars.
“They’re multi-millionaires……it won’t affect them,” said Stephen Pixley. Eric Frees went so far as to say, “Doesn't matter. Bribes are their primary income.”
Whether independent voters think members of Congress should be denied pay during a shutdown or they think it wouldn’t do anything, the common sentiment is that voters don’t believe members of Congress are prioritizing their needs.
And this is because the system incentivizes lawmakers to put party first. They are rewarded for pointing fingers, not solving problems.